South Australian trainer Phillip Stokes has counted off a number of factors in his filly Maybe Discreet’s favour in Wednesday’s $500,000 Group One Thousand Guineas at Caulfield.
Stokes cites an even field, a better barrier and a liking for Caulfield.
And he says Maybe Discreet could be in even superior shape than she was when she sped to her second straight win at Flemington on October 6.
Following her victory in the Group Two Edward Manifold Stakes (1610m) the filly enjoyed a recovery break and will be in peak form, he said.
“She took a couple of days to get back on her feet after the race because she had to travel over there and obviously it was a hard run going forward from the (wide) barrier,” Stokes said.
“She took about three days to get back to where we wanted her.”
Stokes is confident Maybe Discreet will perform well in what he calls an open race.
“She’s fit and well going forward into tomorrow,” he said. “She’ll be on the speed there somewhere and she’ll be strong at the end.
“We’re proven at the mile and I think it’s a pretty even field.
“There’s no standouts, there are a very even lot of fillies and I’m confident and happy with where our horse is at.
“And I just think that with the better barrier (nine) and around Caulfield, there’s a few ticks there.”
The only query is the weather, with rain forecast for late Tuesday and clearing on Tuesday morning.
“She’s raced on a rain-affected track here (in Adelaide),” Stokes said.
“She does get through it but it’s not ideal. But I won’t use that as an excuse.”
